I have had our three older children daytime potty trained by their second birthdays (in three days). I am planning on training our youngest child in two months (she is 19 months). Still… I have one nighttime bed wetter. He just can not stay dry at night. I have heard that there can be a medical issue behind it, at times, and so while we wait for our appointment with a urologist next month, I am doing these things to help us help him for now…

I do these things especially if our child is going to sleep at someone else’s house.

1- Limit drinks three hours prior to bed. (This is a great tip for all ages… I suggest this in my night-time potty training post, too.) If he has to have a drink, I only allow milk, because it doesn’t seem to go through him as quickly. If your child is going to a sleepover, simply explain to your child why he should not have a drink before bed (increases chance of accident), even if everyone else has something. Tell him to simply say “No, thank you. I’m not thirsty.”

2- If the sleepover is at our house, we take him to the bathroom before we go to bed, around midnight. He will be pretty much asleep and probably will not remember the next day (our other boys never remembered).

4- Use a plastic bed cover to protect your mattress (it is a plastic fitted sheet). You can pick these up for a few dollars at the store. I clean ours with cleaning spray. We still use a diaper at night. We keep this on our son’s bed constantly. You can’t pack one for a sleepover, but I did want to just throw in this tip!

5- Pack extra clothing & a plastic bag, just in case. Tell them what to do (go to the bathroom, change, put your other clothes in the bag and stick them into your sleepover bag).

6- Have a code word. If your child does have an accident or gets nervous, give them a code word to use (I always had one). Let them call you or send you a text, if they have your phone or took an iPod, using the code word. This word would be discreetly used in a sentence like “It is looking very FOGGY mom.” You would hear that & know that your child was ready to be picked up ASAP.

7. Use Huggies Goodnights®.TRU-FIT®.for sleepovers and when your child has friends over. (Pack an extra one in their bag, too). Don’t worry because they look like underwear, so no one will know that your child is still in a diaper. They are just a soft fabric underwear that works with disposable protection to keep sheets and PJ’s dry all night. You can protect your kids from accidents and embarassment. You can find out more about them here (and get a coupon) It can allow your child to have comfortable nights.

About Becky Mansfield

Hi! I'm Becky Mansfield ~ founder of Your Modern Family. I am the wife to Mickey & the mom to four little blessings! I am a teacher turned play therapist and stay at home Mom. I love to share my organization tips, kid ideas, money-saving tips and recipes with you. Read more...

hi! I came across your site from Pinterest! Not sure if your son still has night wetting issues but..we used a potty alarm for my son! Worked like a charm..best 40 something I spent!! His problem was he was such a deep sleeper even when I woke him he never remembered…where the alarm wakes them…only took a few weeks. My son was in first grade! Love your site! And good luck!

I know I’m way late to this game by about a year and a half BUT…. We had a problem and my son too was a deep sleeper. I would wake him (he wouldn’t remember) when I went to bed and then set my alarm an hour or two prior to normal wake up and we’d go again. After a few weeks he was waking himself up to go. It was torture but it was well worth it.

Hi!! I had this problem too…for almost 20 years!!! (I know, It was soooo awkward) I got married and the “problem” was still there (gosh my husband is an angel) but suddenly, when my first Little girl was born something changed in my body or brain and the problem now is completely gone. My parents took me to see doctors but nothing work perfectly. After the 12 years old I had it almost under control, but there was some accidents from time to time (some of them incredibly terrible cause I was in a highschool trip). I tell you this so you dont get to anxious about it. Most of kids solve the problem when they follow a treatment (my sister did) but for some on them (included me) it could be harder. No even medication worked for me. Actually it was worst. I still believe that maybe another doctor it could have been a good idea, mine weren’t experts but well, my parents tried to help me but after 12 years old they just gave up. If I learned something with all this is that emotions directly affect it. If I went to bed feeling stressed, anxious, very sad or angry: accident! I was a very very nervous Little girl and my parents didnt help a lot with that. When I had 11 years old I realized about this so I started to work on my emotions the best I could and thats when I improved a lot on this topic. Sometimes I just couldn’t help it, but at least I could be dry the entire night most of the month. So, try to find out if your Little one is too anxious or nervous, maybe this could be making it harder. I know you both are going to do it just great!! So, cheer up!

I read an article from a urologist saying that a big factor for children wetting the bed is chronic constipation. Just because your child is pooping doesn’t mean they aren’t actually constipated. The looser stool comes out while the harder stuff continues to become impacted and puts pressure on the bladder. I’ve also heard that chiropractors can help correct bed wetting.

While my 12 year old son was bedridden with an injury he had a temporary bedwetting problem. Early one morning, I went into his room to check on him, and he was in the process of removing his pajamas. Once he was naked, I got a warm, wet washcloth to give him a spongebath. He still seemed half asleep, but I sat on his bed next to him, and carefully began to wash his body.. To my surprise, he started peeing all over his bedsheet, and my nightie. Luckily, I had put a plastic mattress cover under his bed sheet. It all seemed to happen so fast. When he finished peeing, he told me that he was sorry that he couldn’t hold it any longer. I guess he really had to pee. I hugged him, cleaned up the pee mess, and had him wear a diaper at night while he was bedridden. There were a few more wet mornings, when I checked on him, but he peed in his diaper. This was a temporary situation.

Hi, I'm Becky Mansfield!

Founder of Your Modern Family. I am the wife to Mickey & the mom to four little blessings! I am a teacher turned play therapist and stay at home Mom. I love to share my organization tips, kid ideas, money-saving tips and recipes with you. More About Becky...

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Hi, I'm Becky Mansfield!

Founder of Your Modern Family. I am the wife to Mickey (my HS sweetheart) & the mom to four little blessings! I am a teacher turned child play therapist and stay at home Mom. I love to share my organization tips, kid ideas, money-saving tips and recipes with you. More About Becky...